


A Christmas Stalker

by Micte



Category: Jupiter Ascending (2015)
Genre: Christmas, JA Secret Santa, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2017-12-23
Packaged: 2019-02-18 21:39:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13109037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Micte/pseuds/Micte
Summary: He wouldn’t describe what he had been doing all afternoon as stalking… maybe intense following, but not stalking!





	A Christmas Stalker

**Author's Note:**

> This is a xmas gift for Menage-gay-trois!
> 
> I’ll be honest: i’ve never done something for balem/caine until now and i was a little scared at first, but i want you to know that i did my best and i hope you like it. 
> 
> Feliz Navidad !

They sat at the tiniest table in the bar because it was full with peasants.

People, Balem had to remind himself. Just because he didn’t like poor people that didn’t give him the right to refer to them as peasants, or at least that’s what his therapist had said.

The bar was full of people because everyone in the city was looking for shelter from the freezing weather outside. Balem looked around with a minimum of fake interest in the mundane decor of the place. He had never been in a place like that but then again he was adding a lot of firsts to his list that day.

And he was sure his therapist would disapprove of some of them.

For starters, he had never abandoned his bodyguard Greeghan to follow some pea- some guy through the snowy streets of New York. That was new.

“So…” the guy in question said but Balem pretended he didn’t listen. It was easy. He did that at least 50 times on a daily basis to all kinds of people, and this man was one of the most ignored in his building - or at least Balem was content with the blond in front of him thinking so... “Why were you stalking me?”

...until now.

Ballem scuffed as if what Mr. Wise was saying was ridiculous but resisted the unwelcome impulse to face him and contradict his ludicrous statement so he took a long drink of beer from the cold glass the waitress had offered them, wishing it were wine, but it served the purpose of making some time while his mind thought frantically of a credible lie to use.

Stalking. Ridiculous!

He wouldn’t describe what he had been doing all afternoon as stalking… maybe intense following, but not stalking! That had negative connotations and he was one of the richest men in Manhattan, so he wouldn’t let anyone ruin his reputation…

And then again, his question had been why... and how was he supposed to answer that? He couldn’t tell him the truth… Balem himself could barely accept it as it was.

My sister went back to England for the holidays because she cannot stand me.

and,

My brother cannot stand me either so he invited me to his Annual Christmas Eve Orgy because he hates me and obviously I cannot go.

followed by,

So tailing the errand boy of Abrasax Industries around town sounded like a much more interesting idea in my head that the alternative: getting drunk alone in my office on Christmas Eve while crying over my dea-

No. The truth sucked.

“I wasn’t,” he said, leaving the almost-empty glass on the table with a delicate movement of his hands as Caine narrowed his eyes with suspicion.

“I saw you walking behind me at Ross, Macy’s and Target…”

“It’s a small world.”

“And you are fuc… ejem, filthy rich.”

“Your point?”

“Are you short on your Christmas gifts budget?”

“Of course I’m not!”

“Then why did I saw you in every store I visited?” Caine asked just before lifting his glass to his lips and Balem struggled to look away. That was the issue with Mr. Wise… for some inexplicable reason Balem always caught himself staring at the man when the other wasn’t looking, at he knew that bad habit of his was partly to blame for his erratic behavior of that day.

But Mr. Wise didn’t have to know that.

“You stole that drone from my office!” the young man yelled suddenly and he had been too busy contemplating the movements of Caine’s throat as he downed his beer and he hadn’t noticed the waitress that came to refill their glasses. The woman jumped, as people did during meetings and dinners when he did that and he could hear the advice of his therapist in his head.

To calm down, count to ten.

Bloody hell Bob, Balem thought as turned to the wall to ignore the girl. Caine just sighed and gave her an apologetic smile.

“You mean… the one in the trash?” Caine asked, starting on his second drink as soon as they were left alone.

“Yes… the one in the trash,” Balem said with as much as dignity as he could while touching the cold surface of the glass with the tip of his fingers.

“It’s not stealing if it was in the tash.” Caine pointed out casually and then clicked on the screen of his phone to check on the hour.

“You took my property…” Balem retorted with a clenched jaw, telling himself that the annoyance was because the guy stole the drone and not because it seemed that he would leave soon.

Because Balem didn’t care if he left… not at all.

“You ordered Greeghan to throw it away.”

“Because it is defective.”

“You just didn’t read the instructions!” Caine’s voice went a little high with frustration.

“How did you… were you spying on me?” Balem asked, trying to sound outraged to hide a wave of excitement of what that could mean.

“Of course… not… what…” Caine rolled his eyes and took another drink of beer but even with the low light Balem was sure he saw him blushing, and that made him smile, “I was walking by your office,” Caine started to explain, trying, and failing, to sound casual, “And you know, flying a drone is easy when you take five minutes to read the manual…”

“I’m a pretty busy person…” Balem said smugly and ignored Caine’s raised eyebrow, “And anyway… If you needed a raise and you didn’t want to ask Titus, you could have asked me… instead of stealing…”

Caine opened his mouth and then closed it again without saying anything. Balem knew there was something shady in the “professional” relationship between Caine and his brother. Titus had been cryptic as always when Kalique had asked about his new asset back then but even without the details Balem understood that Caine was in debt with the little shit and that was a position he only wished on the worst of his enemies…

But still, Balem wouldn’t complain. His brother had good taste after all…

His attention went back to Caine as the blond rubbed his face, clearly trying not to freak out and Balem resumed his drinking, trying to look as innocent as Kalique liked to pretend she was on a daily basis.

“Do you want it back?” Caine finally offered, raising his voice just enough to startle his boss’ brother, “It’s in the truck. I can give it back to you before you sue me…”

“I wouldn’t sue you over such a trifle…”

“But you would stalk me...”

“I wasn’t…”

“You were.”

“I was curious. I’ll admit that,” Balem said, aware of the influence the alcohol was having him, but hardly caring anymore, “You… picked up the drone from the trash and then went on a toy and mittens shopping spree…” he could give a detail list of what Caine had bought but he decided against it, “I mean… are you married? do you have kids?”

He had always wondered but he wasn’t the type to go around asking personal questions to his employees. But now that he felt light-headed he decided that this was the best shot he had to get an answer to those questions.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Caine’s voice sounded softer now and Balem thought that he has trying hard not to smile, “I’m Santa Claus.”

Balem blinked, letting the words sink in.

Was he drunk? He didn’t feel THAT far gone but…

Balem took a good look at the errand boy and his declaration along with the redness of his cheeks and the sincerity of his eyes made him feel nervous… so he bursted into laughter.

Had he been following around a man on drugs all afternoon because he was hot as a way to avoid the reality of his boring life?

“You must be high...” he said between the laughter and Caine actually chuckled. The blond now looked amused at his reaction and all the frustration and tension had disappeared…

“I don’t do drugs,” he explained and Balem waved a dismissive hand.

“Then you are mental!”

“It’s...for an orphanage.”

“A what?”

“I play Santa for an orphanage… every Christmas…” Caine explained, raising his glass in the air before drinking every single drop and by the time he put it back on the table Balem was looking at him with a confused expression.

“So you are…”

“Yeah.”

“Oh.”

And awkward silence fell between them and Balem was glad that the waitress reappeared again with another two glasses of beer, ready to replace the old ones. As soon as she left, Caine added, “I bring presents for the kids, clothes and toys, because they are short on their presents budget” Caine he pulled one of the glasses in front of him, “not that you could relate…”

Balem took a few seconds to react. It wasn’t the first time he had someone making salty comments about his lifestyle and normally yelled, threw things around or demanded Greeghan to take care of the people daring to talk to him that way, but this time he decided to drink the entire pint in just one try (another first for him) before telling Caine something he didn’t even had discussed with his therapist yet, “I never met my father.”

He paused, waiting to see if Caine would say something to that but the blond just looked at him, “I never knew my father. And my mother died last year. I know what you are going to say, that I am rich so… I can’t complain, right?. At least that’s what every bloody T.V. show and website says about me but my point is…”

“It’s bullshit.” Caine said and Balem was ready for the usual. It was the main reason he didn’t have any friends and who cared if he made a scene in a downtown bar with one of his employees? Balem opened his mouth, looking for a hurtful thing to yell, but then he felt Caine’s hand moving over his and the blond whispered, “They are bullshit.”

Balem blinked, confused. Mr Wise… Caine was so confusing.

“Well, I gotta go.” the blond say, making things even worse for Balem’s drunk head.

“Now? Why?” the man said, reaching for that hand that Caine had used to comfort him, but now it was out of reach, looking for money to pay for the drinks, “Drinks are on me.”

Caine watched Balem taking a lot of bills from an inner pocket in his jacket. They were too many, but he didn’t say anything and just smiled at the lack of care he showed when he was drunk.

“I need to pick up… my Santa costume,” Caine explained while putting on his coat and then dared to glance at Balem’s face. His cheeks were red and his green eyes were big and pleading.

Caine didn’t completely believed the drone story… he had spent enough time working in that office (and secretly watching big boss, although he wouldn’t admit it easily) to know the dynamic between the siblings and his brother and sister were everything but affectionate with each other.

What was that saying? That money doesn't buy happiness… Maybe that was true for Balem. And if the man had already followed him all afternoon anyway... “Do you wanna come? I could use a stalker elf.” Caine offered, pointing at the exit behind him.

At first Balem scoffed in disbelief but then Caine remained there, unmoving and nervous, waiting for his answer and Balem, encouraged by his low resistance to craft beer, walked up to the blond, grabbed the end of his scarf, and pulled him to the exit.

“I’m going, but I’m nobody’s elf…” he clarified as they made their way through the snowy street.

He heard Caine’s laugh and in that moment he knew that even though his therapist would disapprove of most of what he had done that night, stalking the errand boy had been kind of a good decision.

 

 


End file.
